Lubricating system



Nov. '24, 1936. F. c. BLANCHARD LUBRICATING SYSTEM Filed April 20, 19293 Sheets-Sheet 1 I 37/716 22/710 2" ede riic (ZBZa 21/072 Nov. 24, 1936.F. c. BLANCHARD LUBRICATING SYSTEM Filed April 20, 1929 5 Sheets-Sheet 2mullllulmnlllmlmlvllnm I raven/i07 Z fiegzwjggBzamkard 111271 WW 2gfliifys 1936- F. c. BLANCHARD LUBRICATING SYSTEM Filed April 20, 1929 3Sheets-Sheet 3 v I raven/i07 E ade-rick (Jillian/chard Patented Nov. 24,1936 new STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LUBRICATING SYSTEM Frederick C. Blanchard, Dorchester, Mass. IApplication April 20,1929, Serial No. 356,694

'7 Claims.

of one specific embodiment thereof, while its scope will be moreparticularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings: r

Fig. 1 is an elevation, somewhat diagrammatic in character, of alubricating system exemplifying the invention;

Figs. 2 and 3 are sectional views illustrating in two positions one ofthe controlling valves of 20 the system;

Figs. land 5 are sectional views illustrating in two positions anotherof thecontrolling'valves of the system;

Fig. 6 is a view, partly in elevation, and partly in. section,illustrating the pump unit, the reservoir, in which it is housed, andthe motor and gearing for driving the pump unit;

Fig. 7 is a vertical, sectional view on an enlarged scaleof one of thefeeders of the system;

Fig. 8 is a sectional view on line 8-8 of Fig.7;

Fig. 9 is a plan, partly in horizontal section, illustrating the pumpunit of the system;

Fig. 10 is a sectional view, partly in elevation, on line Ill-l0 of Fig.9;

Fig. 11 is a sectional view, on line ll-ll of Fig; 10; s

Fig. 12 is a sectional view. on the line lZ-IZ of Fig. 10; g

Fig. 13 is a sectional view on line l3l3 of Fig. 10; and

Fig. 14 is a sectional view on line I l-l4 of Fig. 10.

Referring to the drawings, and to the embodiment of the invention whichis illustrated therein, and having reference at first to Fig. 6, thereis shown a lubricating system comprising a tank l5, presenting areservoir for oil. The tank is provided with a filler cap I B, seated onand about a curb ll, which prevents dirt from falling into the'oil whenthe cap is removed for the filling of the'reservoir. vent the. entranceof foreign matter, and to filter the oil. mounted for movement to oneside, by mountmg the same 9. 1 a ve i s p or rod l9,:Which the irregularA screen It is provided to 'pre- The filler cap is conveniently extendsloosely through a cover-plate 20, and is encircled by a spring 2|,bearing at one end against the under side of the cover-plate and at itsother end, against a suitable abutment 22 secured to the rod. When thecover is lifted, 5 this spring yields, and after the cover is liftedclear of the curb, the cover may be swung laterally to uncover thescreen." The cover-plate is conveniently secured to the tank by screws23.-

A drain plug 24 near the bottom of the reservoir is provided to drainthe oil out of the latter, in

case it should be necessary at any time.

Referring now to Fig. 1, leading from the reservoir is a conduit systemcomprising a plurality of sections of pipe 25, and one or more 5'-feeders 26, whose external forms varysomewhat to conform to therequirements of the particular situation where they are to be used. Forexample, the feeder may be a through feeder, designated by theadditional character a, or a deadend feeder, designated by theadditional characterb."

The feeder illustrated in Figs. '7 and 8 is one o the through feeders,which is interposed between and connects two pipe sections, and iscoupled thereto by unions 21. The feeder comprises a body or casing 28,provided with a through passage 29 connecting the pipe sections, andproviding for the passage of oil past this particular feeder. In thecase of the dead-end feeder 26b, 3 the passage does not extend entirelythrough. Above the passage 29, there is a small, upwardlydirectedopening 30, and a valve seat 3|, and above the latter a chamber 32 for aneedle valve 33, normally resting on the valve seat and closing thepassage 30. The valve is suitably constructed and arranged to respond toa predetermined pressure in the system, as by being loaded with anappropriately arranged spring 34. Herein, the lower end of this springrests 40 against an abutment 35, presented by the valve, and itsupper-end against an abutment 36, which is adjustable vertically by ahollow screw 31 threaded into the chamber 32. A steel ball 38,interposed between the abutment 36 and the 5- screw, is provided toensure that the pressure of the spring shall be brought as nearly axialas possible with the valve. The rate of feed is in creased by turningthe screw in one direction,

and is diminished by turning it in the other.

This varies the load of the spring imposed upon the needle valve.

When the valve opens, oil is admitted from the passage 29 into thechamber 32 thereabove,

whence it descends by a lateral passage 39 (see;

Fig. 8) to a nozzle 40. The rate of feed is readily observable throughopenings 4| in a casing 42, which is threaded onto the valve casing andholds a tubular glass 43. This casing presents a nipple 44, to bescrewed into an appropriate opening in or adjacent the bearing to belubricated.

Into the inlet of the conduit system comprising the pipe sections 25 andfeeders 26 oil is supplied under pulsating pressure by instrumentalitiesincluding a pressure-producing means such as a pumping unit (see Fig. 6)designated generally by the numeral 45, having a driving shaft 46 whichextends through a bearing bushing 41 and a packing gland 48 to theexterior of the casing, where it is provided with a driving element,herein a gear 49 meshing with and driven by a pinion 50, to which poweris furnished. by appropriate means, herein an electric motor 5|.

The pumping unit will now be described in detail, reference being had atfirst to Fig. 10. The principal part is a casting 52, which has a base53 (see Fig. 14), secured to a pair of lugs 54, upstanding from thebottom of the tank. This casting presents bearings 55 and 56 (see Fig.10) for the shaft 46. It also presents a pair of pump cylinders 51, anda pair of piston valve cylinders 58. All of these cylinders are open atthe top. The pump cylinders are closed at the bottom by plugs 59, butthe piston valve cylinders are open at the bottom to avoid the trappingof oil, which would prevent them from moving. Ports 60 con nect the pumpcylinders 51 with the piston valve cylinders 58. Inlet and outlet portsBI and 62 are interposed between and intersect the piston valvecylinders 58;

There are two pistons 63, one working in each cylinder, and there aretwo piston valves64, one working in each piston valve cylinder. Eachpiston valve is provided with a reduced portion 65, whose length andlocation with reference to the piston valve and its relationship withthe several ports are such that, in the operation of the pump, oil isdrawn into the port BI and is discharged through the outlet port 62.In-the position of the parts shown in Fig. 10, the left-hand piston 63is at the lowest point of its stroke, and is ready to start upwardly,while the right-hand piston is at the top of its stroke and is ready tostart in a downward direction, the left-hand piston valve is atmid-point on its upward stroke, and the right-hand piston valve is atmid-point on its downward stroke. Under these circumstances, theleft-hand piston has been forcing oil through the left-hand port 60around the reduced portion of the left-hand piston valve and into theoutlet port 62. Before the left-hand piston starts its up-stroke, andbefore the righthand piston starts its down-stroke, the'left-hand pistonvalve rises, and the right-hand piston valve descends. When thishappens, the reduced portion of the left-hand piston valve places theleft-hand cylinder in communication with the inlet port 6|, and. theright-hand cylinder in full communication with the outlet port 62. Itfollows that the next up-stroke of the left-hand piston causes oil to bedrawn from the inlet port 6! into the left-hand cylinder, and oil to beforced from the right-hand cylinder into the outlet port 62.

The actuation of the pistons is conveniently accomplished by a pair ofeccentrics 66 and a pair of eccentric straps 6T, encircling theeccentrics and connected by pivots 6a to the pistons. Similarly, thepiston valves are. actu t d, by a P Of eccentrics 69, encircled byeccentric straps 19, connected by pivots H to the piston valves. Whileall of the eccentrics might be secured to the shaft, if it were desiredto operate the pump in only one direction, it is desirable that the pumpshall be capable of operation in either di-- rection for convenience inconnecting it to the motor, or other power means by which it is to bedriven. For this reason, therefore, the eccentrics 69 are secured to acollar 12, which in turn is secured to the driving shaft 46, but theeccentrics 66 are loosely mounted on the shaft, and are provided withpins 13 (one of which is well illustrated in Fig. 12), each of which isdriven by a collar 14 secured to the shaft, and having a lost motiondriving connection with the pin, as by providing the collar with aslabbed-off portion 15, the extent of which is such that, if thedirection of rotation of the collar be reversed, the collar will travelone-half a revolution before it picks up the pin again. This arrangementensures a proper timing of the pistons with relation to'the pistonvalves, no matter which way the shaft is rotated.

Referring now to Fig. 14, the inlet of the pump is provided with astrainer 16, mounted in a re-- movable ring -ll', which is threaded intoan intake elbow l8, the latter in turn being threaded into the casing52, and having a passage 19 communicating with the inlet port H. Thestrainer 16 is located close to the bottom of the reservoir, and strainsall the oil which enters the pump. An outlet pipe 8%], threaded into thecasting 52 and communicating with the outlet port 62, is connected tothe inlet of the first of the pipe sections 25 of the conduit system.

Referring now to Fig. 6, there is also connected to thefirst pipesection of the conduit system a pipe 8|, which extends in a downwarddirection through the cover-plate of the reservoir, and, as shown inFig. 13, is threaded into the casting 52, which is provided with apassage 82 communicating with said pipe and intersecting a passage 83,the latter having an outlet 84, adapted to by-pass oil into thereservoir. When this outlet is open,. so much of the oil is by-passed tothe reservoir,- that in the outlying piping system beyond the by-passpipe 8!, there is a comparatively low pressure (in practice about fourpounds) ,insufficient to make the feeders respond. When, however, theby-pass outlet is closed, by pressure-controlling means such as a valve85, the pressure in the system rises abruptly to a relatively highpressure (in practice about sixty pounds), which is sufiicient to makethe feeders respond. As herein shown, the maximum pressure which isdeveloped in the system when the valve 85 is closed is determined by apressure relief valve presently to be described. In the present example,the valve 85 is a slowly rotating plate, appropriately driven by and insynohronism with the pump, as by securing the valve by a pin 36 to aworm gear 81, which meshes with and is driven by a worm 88, suitablyformed on or secured to the shaft 46. I

Referring now to Fig. 11, the valve is maintained in firm engagementwith the adjacent face of the casting 52, as by securing the valve andthe worm gear by the pin 86 to a head 89 presented by a shaft 90, whichturns in a bearing 9! presented by the casting, said shaft beingconstantly urged toward the right, as shown in Fig. 11, by a spring 92which encircles the shaft and is interposed between a fixed abutment 93on the shaft and a washer 94, which rests against the adjacent face ofthe casting 52. This spring, therefore, constitutes an automatictake-up, which prevents leakage of the valve when the latter is closed.

In practice, the valve 85 is variously timed according to therequirements of the particular installation. In some cases, it is closedonce in every sixty revolutions of the pump, and there are variousratios down to once in every seven and one-half revolutions. When thevalve is open, and oil is being by-passed back to the reservoir, thepressure in the piping system is only that required to keep the pipingsystem filled. When the valve is closed, the oil is delivered against asimple pressure relief valve now to be described, as a result of whichthere is pro-. duced in the system a comparatively high pressure for abrief interval of time, the pressure belivery.

. I06 threaded onto the valve casing 96.

ing'of sufficient intensity tocause the feeders to respond. If apressure curve were taken, it would show comparatively long dwells of apressure insufficient to open the feeders, and comparatively shortperiods of pressure sufficient to open the feeders. V

Constantly operating, automatic systems feed altogether too much oil formany machines, thus resulting in wastage of oil and damage to goods.These disadvantages are avoided by the use of the herein-disclosedsystem, in which the operation of the feeders is not only intermittent,but the feeding periods are short kicks, separated by long dwells duringwhich no oil is fed, thus giving more reliable feeds at much slowerrates than is possible with feeders having a continuous de- Referring toFig. 13, there is provided a pressure relief valve designated generallyby the numeral 95, the same comprising a casing 96 threaded into thecasting 52, and having a passage Ii? communicating with a short passage98, which in turn communicates with the passage 83. The passage 9'5terminates at its upper end in a valve seat 99, which is controlled by avalve I00 working in a cylindrical chamber I0 I. Above this valve, thereis a comparatively stiff spring I02, whose lower end is seated in achamber I63 provided in the upper end of the valve, and whose upper endrests against an abutment I84 presented by a plunger I05, which isguided by a cap A comparatively light spring IIlI is interposed betweenthe abutment I0 3, on the plunger, and an abutment I98 presented by thecap I96. A button IIIS is attached to the upper end of the plunger.

When the mechanically actuated valve 85 closes the outlet 84 of theby-pass, and the pressure consequently rises, the valve Hill is lifted.Inasmuch as the spring I0! is lighter than the spring I02, the formeryields to the greater extent under the influence of the pressure. Theventing or relief of the valve is conveniently accomplished by providingthe valve with a longitudinal passage H0, constantly communicating withthe passage 91 and with one or more, herein several radial passages IIIleading to a circum ferential groove H2. The valve casing is providedwith a relief port I I3, shown in dotted lines in Fig. 13, and in fulllines in Fig. 6. The inner end of this port is only slightly above thecircumferential groove IIZ, and when the valve is tain amount of oilleaks past the valve I96 into the system; because it rises and fallswith the pressure pulsations. If the oil supply were exhausted, or ifthe pump were not functioning or developing proper pressure, thebutton'would'not rise and fall Similarly, if the oil line were broken,badly leaking or clogged, the button would remain dormant. 'This featureis of great practical value, because the operator of the machine, or theoilwright, need only glance at. the button to be'assured as to thelubrication of the machine.

In practice,'the button is marked with the word Flush. By depressing thebutton, the heavy spring I82 is compressed, thereby loading the reliefvalve heavily,so that the pulsation-pressure is greatly increased, witha corresponding increase in the amount of oil fed to all the bearings.This simultaneous flushing is advantageous when starting a machine whichhas been idle for some time, or if exceptionally difficult operatingconditions must be met. When the button is released, the pressure isautomatically restored to normal, and the established feed rates areresumed. I

Referring now to Fig. 1, the system is applied to a plurality ofmachines H5, each having a plurality of bearings H6, each onefed by oneof the feeders 26. One of these machines .is I designated by theadditional character A, and another by the additional character 'B; Themachine II5A has its feeders connected in series by pipe connectionswhich, together with the feeders, constitute a branch leading from themain line or conduit, and this branch terminates in a dead-end feeder26b. The'machine N53 has its feeders connected in series by twobranches, having a common connection leading from the main conduit, andeach of these two branches terminates in a dead-end feeder 26b. Eachof'the remaining machines II5 has its feeders connected in series bypipe connections which, together with the feeders, constitute a localauxiliary loop leading from and back to the main conduit.

Referring now to Figs. 2 and 3, each loop may be connected to anddisconnected from the main conduit by appropriate valve means, herein afour-way valve Ill comprising a-stator H8 and a rotor I IS). The statoris provided with four ports I29, and the rotor is provided with twopassages I 2!. As shown in Fig. 2, the stator 'is in the position'inwhich the loop is incommunication with, and for the time being virtuallya part of, the main conduit, in the sensethat the entire column of oilflowing through the main conduit flows through the loop also. When therotor is in the position shown in Fig. 3, the loop is disconnected fromthe main conduit, and the column of oil in the main conduit flows pastthe loop without entering it. Referring now to Figs. 4 and 5, thebranches associated with the machines II5A and II 53 may be connected toand disconnected from the main conduit by appropriate valve means,herein a three way valve I22, comprising a stator I23 and a rotor I2 3.The'stator is provided with three ports I25, and the rotor is providedwith a passage I26.

shown in Fig. 4, the stator is in the position in which the branch is incommunication with the main conduit, and part of the column of oilfiowing in the latter is taken off into the branch. When the rotor is inthe position shown in Fig. 5, the branch is disconnected from the mainconduit, and the column of oil in the latter flows past the branchwithout any oil entering the latter.

Each machine is provided with an appropriate power-controlling means forstarting and stopping the same. In the example shown, thepowercontrolling means comprises tight and loose pulleys I2! and I28 ona driving shaft I29, a belt I30, and a belt shifter comprising a forkI3I and a sliding rod I32, provided with a handle I33. When the belt isengaged with the tight pulley, as shown, the machine is driven, and whenthe belt is engaged with the loose pulley, the machine is stopped.

The control of the machine is conveniently coordinated with the controlof its valve by providing the latter with an arm I34, connected by alink I35 to the rod I32, the arrangement being such that when themachine is running, the valve is in the proper position to cause oil tobe supplied to the feeders associated with the machine. When, however,the machine is stopped, the supply of oil is shut off by the valve. Thusit is evident that the operator of the machine need not give any thoughtto the lubrication of the machine, except to inspect the sight feed, andeven this inspection may be assigned to one person, such as a departmentoilwright in charge of the entire system. As shown in Fig. 1, the mainconduit, comprising the conduit sections 25, extends from the reservoirpast the several machines in succession, and terminates beyond the last,or most outlying machine (the one at the upper lefthand portion ofFig. 1) in a dead-end, which may be closed by a cap or plug I36, whichmay be removed to scavenge the system of air when first starting a newinstallation, or to allow the system to be flushed out, if desired.

The general operation of the system should be evident without furtherdescription. The pump, driven by the motor, is continued in operationduring working hours, and delivers fresh oil to the system in suilicientquantity to satisfy the demand of all the feeders. Each feeder, adjustedto the number of drops per hour called for by the bearing which itserves, can be checked in an instant by the department oilwright, or bythe machine operator examining the sight-feed. The person in chargeknows that each system under his care is functioning as a whole, becausehe sees the indicating and flushing plunger reciprocate. When themachine is running, the system delivers oil in predetermined amounts toeach bearing, the amount to each of course being predetermined byadjustment of the spring-loading screw 31. When any machine is idle, nooil is delivered to it. The use of the system is characterized byeconomy of oil. By accurate and independent adjustment of the feed rodat each lubrication point, from two to three drops per hour tosubstantially a stream, it is possible to deliver a minimum amount ofoil consistent with safety. The system provides against waste, as wellas against excess of oil.

The quick pressure impulse of high intensity and the resulting jump ofthe needle of each feeder produce a measurable feed of short duration,taken from a circulating supply of lubricant. This makes possible muchlower feed rates than heretofore regarded as safe. The jump of thefeeder needle overcomes any tendency of the oil to form a film in thevalve seat. This opening, being above the column of oil, safe-guards itfrom the entrance of foreign matter, which might be in the system.

Reference is made to my co-pending applications, Serial No. 338,546,filed February 8, 1929 (now Patent No. 1,900,754) and Serial No.338,549, filed February 8, 1929 (now'Patent No. 1,953,824). In eachthere is shown a circulatory system having a conduit extending from apressure-producing unit past one or more machines, each provided withone or more feeders supplied by the conduit, and the latter conducts thesurplus oil back to the source. In each patent a valve at the return endof the conduit causes a pulsating pressure which in turn causesintermittent operation of the feeder or feeders. In the presentapplication, the valve which causes the pulsations is at the inlet endof the system.

Having thus described one embodiment of the invention, but withoutlimiting myself thereto, What I claim and desire by Letters Patent tosecure is:

1. The combination of a machine having controlling means to start andstop the same, one or more oil feeders for feeding oil to said machine,a feeder-supplying conduit, means for supplying to the inlet of saidconduit oil under pulsating pressure which causes said feeder or feedersto respond when it rises to a predetermined point, and means connectedto said controlling means to cause stopping of said machine to beaccompanied by cessation of the supply of oil to said machine.

2. The combination of a machine having controlling means to start andstop the same, one or more oil feeders for feeding oil to said machine,a feeder-supplying conduit, means for supplying to the inlet of saidconduit oil under pulsating pressure which causes said feeder or feedersto respond when it rises to a predetermined point, a valve controllingthe supply of oil from said conduit to said feeder or feeders, and meansfor coordinating the operation of said controlling means and said valveto cause stopping of said machine to be accompanied by closing of saidvalve and to cause starting of said machine to be accompanied by openingof said valve.

3. In a lubricating system, the combination of a reservoir, a mainconduit to which oil is supplied under pressure from said reservoir,said conduit having an outlying dead-end, a loop conduit between saidreservoir and said dead-end. one or more feeders supplied by said loopconduit, and means at will to constitute said loop conduit a part ofsaid main conduit.

4. In a lubricating system, the combination of a reservoir, a mainconduit having an inlet from said reservoir and having an outlyingdead-end, a loop conduit between said inlet and said deadend, one ormore pressure-responsive feeders supplied by said loop conduit, means atwill to constitute said loop conduit a part of said main conduit, andmeans for supplying oil from said reservoir to said inlet underpulsating pressure which causes said feeder or feeders to respond whensaid loop conduit is in communication with said main conduit.

5. In a lubricating system, the combination of a reservoir, a mainconduit having an inlet from said reservoir and having an outlyingdead-end, a branch conduit between said inlet and said dead-end, one ormore pressure-responsive feedoil to be supplied to said machine when thelaters supplied by said branch conduit, means at will to place saidbranch conduit in communication with said main conduit, anddefinitely-timed, power-operated, means for supplying oil from saidreservoir to said inlet under predetermined pulsating pressure whichcauses said feeder or feeders to respond when said branch conduit is incommunication with said main conduit.

6. The combination of a machine having starting means to start the same,one or more feeders for feeding oil to said machine, a feeder-supplyingconduit, means for supplying to the inlet of said conduit oil underpulsating pressure which causes said feeders to respond and to feed whenthe pressure rises to a predetermined point, and means connected to saidstarting means to cause ter is started.

7. The combination of a machine having controlling means to start andstop the same, one or more feeders for feeding oil to said machine, afeeder-supplying conduit, means for supplying to the inlet of saidconduit oil under pulsating pressure which causes said feeders torespond and to feed when the pressure rises to a predetermined point,and means connected to said controlling means to cause oil to besupplied to said machine contemporaneously with the starting of saidmachine and to cause the supply of oil to be discontinuedcontemporaneously with the stopping of said machine.

FREDERICK C. BLANCHARD.

